Real Heroes
by Spider Jackson
Summary: A kid who's down on his luck, suddenly finds himself with a best friend, a girlfriend, and spider powers! (First story, so please, review. Thanks!)
1. The Beginning

**Chapter 1: The Beginning**

Zack Adrian was just a regular kid, albeit he had more downs than up in his life. He had one friend, who was an exchange student so he would be leaving after school let out, no girl or boyfriend, and he was having a severe case of writer's block for the last two weeks.

Now, compared to his other problems that might not seem like a big deal, but, he was supposed to have finished writing a script for the school play. It was supposed to be a musical about The Avengers, which had been coming along great, he was having a very difficult time writing the final number for the big finale where the kid who ends up playing Iron Man is supposed to have a big emotional ballad about how he was stopping a nuke from bringing down NYC, but his mind just kept wandering further, and further from his task.

Eventually, Zack just called up his friend Yayu Tao. Yayu was an exchange student from Japan. He had thin glasses and a bowl cut hairstyle with thin black hair. Yayu also had a retainer, and girlfriend waiting for him back in Japan. "Alright, 555-4226," Zack thought aloud. Yayu answered on the second ring. "Hello?" said Yayu, saying it more as a question than statement. Zack also marveled at Yayu's apparent lack of an accent. He sounded just like he had been born and raised in central New York, rather than Kyoto. "Hey, Yayu, it's Zack." "Oh, hey, what's going on?" "Are you up for going to the rollerdrome today?" "Totally. How soon can you be over here?" asked Yayu excitedly. The rollerdrome was one of the first places Zack had taken Yayu when he found out that Yayu would be staying in the same town as him, and so far it was his favorite place to go. "I'll be there as soon as I can. See you in a couple minutes," Zack informed him, already grabbing his coat and wallet.

As Zack reached for his keys he looked in the mirror, and really observed himself. He had a very Nordic face, with the coming of a beard. He was about 17 and roughly six feet eleven inches. He had blond hair, and eyes that would often change color from green, to turquoise, to blue, and around again.

Next he looked at his outfit, which was often the same only varying in colors. Today he was wearing a forest green button down shirt, with a solid cyan tie, a grey tweed vest, dark blue jeans, maroon converse sneakers, a Hard Rock fedora, and was putting on his leather jacket now.

As Zack was heading down the stairs he shouted, "Going out to roller skate, Mom! I'll be back in a couple hours." Zack walked outside to the car he dreamed of fixing up someday. It worked, but was far from its heyday. It was a red 1962 Chevrolet. Much like Agent Coulson's car, but not as pretty, and as far as Zack knew, couldn't fly. Zach got in, started the car, and began the short drive to Yayu's house. It was just a couple right turns and soon Zack was there.

Zack got out of the car and went up to the door. As soon as he knocked on the door, Yayu's host parent's dogs started barking up a storm, excited to see him. Zack typically was skittish around dogs, but he was perfectly fine around Bonnie, a tiny white Chihuahua, and Clyde, a huge lumbering brown and white Saint Bernard. Yayu's host mom came to the door and unlocked it. It was a good thing Zack did a lot of weightlifting, because Clyde tried to knock Zack down and lick him to death. Luckily though, all he did was push him a little backwards.

"Easy Clyde, down now, down boy. I'm happy to see you too," Zack said affectionately. Bonnie was pawing at Zack's legs trying to get his attention. "How could I forget about little old you?" Zack said as he picked up Bonnie. Bonnie licked his hands and Zack was melting due to the adorability of the situation. "Hey Zack, how's the script going?" asked Mrs. Schwartz. "It's coming along," Zack responded, "I was just getting a case of writer's block, so I thought a little bit of roller skating might help clear my head." "Glad you came by, Yayu's been on the Play Station three all day," said Mrs. Schwartz. "Yayu? On the gaming console?" asked Zack. "He simply cannot beat Guitar Hero. He's been playing it since seven o'clock." Zack looked at his Mickey Mouse watch he got when he was a kid. The time watch said that it was roughly noon. "Holy crap. He must really wanna beat that game," Zack said. "Oh believe me he does," said Mrs. Schwartz. They heard somebody walking down the hall to the door. "That must be him," Zack and Mrs. Schwartz said in unison.

Yayu popped into the door way with a smile on his face. "Hey, Zack. Are you ready to be going?" he asked. Zack just smiled and shook his head while looking down. "Yayu, it's 'Are you ready to go?'." "I know, I know," Yayu said. Yayu was learning and pronouncing English very well, but he was still having trouble with the more complicated grammar. Zack was assigned to help Yayu with everything. "And yes, I am. Let's get out of here. We'll be back in about three hours, Mrs. Schwartz," Zack informed her.

"Alright, be careful. Bye Zack, Yayu," she said as she closed the door. "Come on, Zack!" Yayu said excitedly. As stated before, Yayu loved roller skating. "Okay, okay, I'm coming," Zack said. Yayu and Zack got into the car, and started to drive to the rollerdrome.


	2. The Meeting

I do not own "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars, PJatO and HoO, Spider-Man, or Avengers.

**Chapter 2: The Meeting**

After about a twenty minute drive to the rink, Zack and Yayu got out of the Chevrolet and walked into the building. Dory was waiting in the ticket booth. She had long brown hair, glasses, and was about fiftyish. "Hey Zack, long time no see," said Dory, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Zack chuckled to himself. "Yeah that twenty-four hours feels like an eternity doesn't it?" Zack replied.

"It does when I'm away from my best customer. Good news, no parties today, and mostly just regulars. Oh, hey Yayu. Tell you guys what, you can get in for free, if you perform. It's karaoke day after all," offered Dory. "What song are you wanting to hear?" asked Yayu. "Surprise us," replied Dory. "All right, how about…" Zack then whispered in Yayu's ear. Yayu smiled then said, "Good, but should you do the song by yourself. You are much better singer." "Okay. Wait, Dory, did you get the machine where we can plug it our iPod's in?" Zack asked Dory.

"Absolutely," replied Dory. "Great. Let's go then," said Zack. "Oh, wait, guys. I almost forgot. We got an upgraded version, with blue tooth earpieces, so you can do one of your little dance routines." Zack and Yayu smiled so big that their mouths almost fell off. "That's fantastic," Zack said. He and Yayu went in and got their skates: Zack a size 10 and Yayu a size 9. Dory went into the middle of the rink where the machine was set up. She grabbed an earpiece and put it on. "Hello everyone. Today we have got one heck of a singer. Zack Adrian!" The entire place erupted in applause. Zack is quite a good singer. It was a shame that no one who went to their school went skating to hear him. It might help his friend making.

Zack was the first one up. First he put in the earpiece, then plugged in his iPod. Scrolling through his playlist, Zack set it to "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars. Zack hit play, and immediately the clapping and back-up singer started. He put his iPod on the machine and backed up. The guitar started playing and Zack was swaying the beat, getting a feel for the rhythm. Zack started singing:

"_This hit_," as he said this line Zack slid to the left.

"_That ice cold_," on this line Zack slid to the right.

"_Michelle Pfeiffer_," as he sang this Zack spun in a quick counter-clockwise circle.

"_That white gold_," when Zack sang this he did a quick hop to spread is legs double shoulder length, looked down at his right hand like was singing into a mike, and his left arm straight in the air.

"_This one; for them hood girls; them good girls; straight masterpieces_," on these lines Zack did the moves on the previous four lines but in the opposite directions.

"_Stylin'; While in; Livin' it up in the city_," in these lines Zack did two box steps.

"_Got chucks on_," On the words chucks and on Zack brought his right leg and right forearm up, then tapped with his right leg and brought his right forearm down and snapped.

"_With Saint Laurent_," On the words saint and Laurent Zack did the same thing as the previous line but with his left side.

"_Gotta kiss myself_," When he sang this Zack took a small hop back without the balls of his feet leaving the ground.

"_I'm so pretty_," On this line Zack brought his right arm up and rotated an open hand around his face counter-clockwise. When the hand finished the circle he closed his hand into a fist.

"_I'm too hot_," The other skaters called out (at least the ones that were old enough to) called out "_Hot damn_." On this line Zack did a little hop to bring his legs double shoulder width, brought up his arms up and bent, palms out and at the same height as his shoulders, his head facing the right.

"_Called a police_," Zack slides to the right on this line.

"_And a fireman_," Zack slides to the left.

"_I'm too hot_," Zack does the same thing as the previous "_I'm too hot,_" except his head faces the left.

"_Make a dragon wanna_," on this line Zack slides back bringing his legs together, and his arms out with palms facing up.

"_Retire man_," Zack brings his hands to his hips, leans slightly forward, and looks down to his right.

"_I'm too hot_," On this line Zack points forward, arms fully extended, raising them to point up, with one pelvic thrust.

"_Say my name_," When he sings this Zack brings his legs together, points his right arm, fully extended, to the right and his left arm, bent at the elbow, pointing to the right as well, his hand on his chest, his head facing the right.

"_You know who I am_," On this line Zack stomps his left leg, points his left arm to the left, his right hand on his chest while pointing to the left, and his head facing the left.

"_I'm too hot_," On the word to Zack brings his right leg and forearm up at the same time, and steps his leg down and brings his forearm down while snapping. On the "_hot_" of "_Hot damn_" Zack does the same thing with his left side.

"_Am I bad about that money_?" Zack brings his legs together, looks down to the right, his left arm full extended, pointing up and to the left his right hand grabbing the front tip of his fedora.

"_Break it down_," Zack stands regularly on this line.

"_Girls hit your hallelujah_," Zach points up and has his head face down and to the left. The other skaters sing the "_Woo_," and as the do this Zack has his head face to the left and cups his right hand on his right ear.

"_Girls hit your hallelujah_," Zach is in the same pose as before, only on the opposite side. The same goes for the "_Woo_."

"_Girls hit your hallelujah_," Zach is in the same pose as before only he has his face facing the ceiling. On the "_Woo_," the power went out. A couple people screamed, for out of surprise than any actual fear, and the song stopped. Zack puts his iPod back in his pocket sadly. He had really wanted to finish his dance. Dory shouted "It's okay everyone, it's just a blown fuse or something. Zack, we had no idea you were so good!" Everyone burst out laughing, Zack and Yayu especially.

Zack skated off the skate floor, and in the dark he didn't see someone's foot in the way. He tripped over the person's foot and fell to the ground. "Ow," he said. "Oh my God, I'm so so so so sorry. Are you okay? That was totally my fault," said a girl. Zack knew everyone that came here as a regular, and yet he didn't recognize this voice, although he could tell it was from California. This was a new girl. "No, it's my fault. I was trying to skate in the dark," Zack said as he got up. When turned around to meet his potential new friend, he smiled a huge smile.

He was only able to see her because she had her iPhone on. She was beautiful. She had two different color eyes. Her left eye was green, and her right eye was grey; the color if a storm cloud. She had black hair, but it curled rather naturally. She had a tan, but it wasn't a fake tan, but it was kind of light. Almost like she had lived in California or Florida but didn't like to go outside. She was about the same size he was, with a slightly upturned nose, indicating at least some English decent. She gave off a kind of aura, an aura of power, one that was subtle but deadly… even for a woman. I also noticed she had Greek letters painted on her nails.

"Hello," Zack said, "My name's Zach." "I gathered that from the introduction the manager gave you. I'm Echo," said the girl. "Echo as in 'Echo, echo, echo,'?" asked Zack. "In a sense. I'm named Echo after the Greek myth," Echo explained. "You mean the one with the nymph that fell in love with Narcissus?" asked Zack. "That's the one. Hey, can you hold on for a second. I need my friend to meet you. Iris! Can I ask you to meet my friend here?" said Echo.

Iris came over, and she walked rather awkwardly, kind of like she was in pain. She had her iPhone on too, and I could see her. She had a baseball cap on, Red Sox to be exact. She had blond hair that was kind of a bob cut. She was pale, almost as much as an Irish girl, and had a harmonica poking out of her right pocket. She at green eyes, almost like a forest, and had kind of a flat nose. As soon as she saw Zack her eyes got wide, like someone had just told her she won the lottery. She pulled me into the back corner of the arcade much faster than I thought she would have been able to given the way she had walked.

"Alright. I'm going to take off my hat, and I want you to tell me what you see," said Iris. She had a Bronx accent. Zack looked really confused. "Okay," said Zack cautiously. Zack couldn't have been more surprised if he had found _he_ had won the lottery. She had horns, albeit small horns, but horns nonetheless. "Um, are you like, um, super mad at your boyfriend or something?" asked Zack now feeling very nervous. "Oh, gods you can see them. You should have a protector. Where are they?" Iris said as she sniffed the air a couple times. After she looked like she caught a scent, she rolled her eyes and slapped her forehead.

"Yayu! Yayu Tao! Where are you?" called out Iris. "_How does she know who Yayu is_?" thought Zack. Yayu came forward after a couple seconds. He turned white, when he saw Iris. "Oh gods Iris, what are you doing here?" he asked… In perfect English… No mistakes… With a Bronx accent… "Zack is my assignment. Go back to dad." "I'm on an assignment too. Percy and Annabeth just moved here from California for a new job Annabeth got. Why is he not anywhere NEAR the camp though? Do you smell him?" asked Iris, appearing very irked. "Of course I do. I'm just not sure if he's ready. He might not adjust very well. Calm down little sis it's all under control," said Yayu.

"Wait, guys, what's going?" Zack asked being very confused. "All right, Zack, we need to borrow your car. I'm driving. We need to get somewhere, now," commanded Iris. I was more than happy to hand over my keys. If she had horns coming out of her head I didn't even wanna come close to thinking what came out of anywhere else. "Wait, I need to stop at my house first," Zack said. "What could possibly be so important?" asked Iris, dripping with sarcasm. "I need to get my script. I'm writing the music for the school play. It's about the Avengers and how they saved New York," Zack responded. "There is no time. We need to get you to Percy and Annabeth, now," said Iris. "Please, it's the most important thing in my life right now. I need this," Zack begged.

Echo came over about then, "Iris, what's the deal?" "He's one of you. We need to bring him to your house. Until the camp opens up tomorrow that's the only place he'll be safe," said Iris. "Yayu, you to Zack's house and tell his mom it's time, then bring her there so she can say good-bye," Iris ordered. "Fine, but I'm not sure he's ready." Yayu left and ran so fast I thought he was gonna start flying. "What's going on?" Zack asked. "I'll explain everything in about two minutes. Now come on, let's go," demanded Iris.

Iris, Echo and Zack all shuffled out to the car. Echo stopped when she saw it. "What is it?" asked a very irate Iris. "This car is awesome. It's just like the one Coulson has, well, had from the Agents of Shield show. A little beat up, but one of my cousins our cousins can fix it up real good," said Iris. "_Our_ cousins?" asked Zach. He had never seen this girl before in his life, no way they could be related. "You mean you don't know?" asked Echo. "Know what?" Zack asked. "Get in the car. At Echo's house. In!" screamed Iris. The three got into the car and started to drive.

Two minutes later, just as Iris had said, they were parked in front of Echo's house. It was just down the block from Zack's house. Huh. Zack was ushered inside and was greeted by two very confused parents. "Echo, who is this?" said the dad. He had black hair and green eyes. He looked very familiar, but, Zack couldn't put his finger on it. "Iris said to bring him here. Apparently he's one of us," said Iris. The mom looked at Zack quizzically, almost as if she was studying him. She had long, curly hair like Echo, but was more of a blond. She also had the exact same color eyes as Echo's right eye. Zack thought she looked familiar too, but it was driving him insane. "Iris, does he know?" asked the mom. "Not a thing. My brother is his protector," said Iris. "Can we skip the questions and tell me what on Earth is going on please?" Zack asked.

"One more question young man: how old are you?" asked the dad. "I'm seventeen. Can you explain now?" asked Zack. The mom and dad looked at each other confused. "He's a little old Annabeth. Should we tell him?" asked the dad. "_Okay, the mom's Annabeth_," thought Zack, "_Then that means the dad's Percy. Hang on, Percy and Annabeth, Echo after the Greek myth, Iris and Yayu are protectors and Iris has horns in her head. Holy shit_!"

"I'm a demi god!" Zack exclaimed, "But I thought those were just books, fiction, made for enjoyment?" The room just looked at him and blinked. "What books?" asked Annabeth. "You know, the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series? The Heroes of Olympus series? They're all about you're adventures at Camp Half-Blood and quests? Ring any bells?" asked Zack. They all just blinked at him… except for Echo. "Do you have them?" asked Zack. Echo nodded. "Go get them," said Zack. Annabeth was the first to speak after Echo went upstairs.

"So, Zack, if there are books claiming to know all our adventures, who are we?" "You, ma'am are Annabeth Chase Jackson. Daughter of Athena. You have a brother named Malcolm. You sir, are Perseus Jackson. Son of Poseidon and Sally Jackson. You had a step-dad whom you nicknamed Smelly Gabe. Your mom froze him with the head of Medusa. Although, Iris, you're not mentioned at all. Who's your father, perhaps he's mentioned," prompted Zack. "Hedge Gleeson?" said Iris.

"Really? He's one of my two favorite satyrs! He's tied with Percy's best friend, Grover Underwood," as Zack said this Echo came down the stairs. "I got it," said Echo. "No need Coco, but thank you," said Annabeth, "Who wrote them though?" "Rick Riordan. Why?" asked Echo. "Ah, I see. He's a son of Apollo. His Roman side actually. He must have seen these coming and been able to put it to paper. Fascinating," said Annabeth. "You must be a Greek demi-god, seeing as how you're not in California being raised by wolves," said Percy. There was a knock on the door. Percy got up and answered it. It was Zack's mom and Yayu. Yayu had a suitcase and my script.

"Mom," Zack said "Did you know?" "Yes. They said though that if you didn't know you'd be safer longer," his mom said as she hugged him, "Oh, Zack, why now? You were so close." "It's okay mom. Do you know who my dad was?" asked Zack. "He made me promise not to tell. He's going to tell you when you get to camp," "Okay. When can we go?" asked Zack. "Orientation is tomorrow, but if Iris rushed you hear, and you understand it all, Percy needs to take you in to the Big House, now," said Annabeth.

"Here's your bag. And here's your script. See you tomorrow," said Yayu. "Daddy, can I go with you?" asked Echo. "Sure thing E. You know how much I love to see people annoy Mr. D," said Percy. "I'm the best at annoying him." Echo was beaming with pride about that. "Can we go now? If I'm in mortal danger I would like to get inside the magical boundary please," Zack said. "Alright. Love you Wise girl," Percy said as he kissed Annabeth. "See you soon Seaweed Brain," said as she kissed Percy. "Ugh, let's go already," said Echo.


	3. The Revelation

I do not own PJatO and HoO, Spider-Man, or Avengers.

**Chapter 3: The Revelation**

It was going to be a long drive. Going from Upstate Central New York to the Big Apple was going to be at least a four hour drive. Zack decided to ask Percy a few questions, since they would be together for a while. "So, Percy, the books didn't come out that long ago, and in the last one, which came out last year I might add, you're only seventeen. If these books are true, how come you're like, I'm guessing twenty-nine?" asked Zack. "Zack, do you know how long it takes for a book to get published, even for an accomplished author?" responded Percy. "Oh, right takes a while. So that gave you guys plenty of time to have your other adventures while Rick was writing one. Got it. I have another question, though," said Zack.

"What is it? Anything at all as long as it's not about one of my quote-unquote "adventures"," said Percy. "Why did you name your daughter after the cursed nymph that Leo and Hazel met?" asked Zack. "Oh, I figured you'd ask that sooner or later. Well, Echo's story is not a happy one, so we thought we'd name our daughter after her so that one Echo at least can have a happy ending," explained Percy. Zack smiled, Percy was right. That is a very good reason to name your daughter after a cursed Nymph.

"I suppose you saw this next question coming too. Does Echo here have any of your abilities? Even to a lesser extent?" asked Zack. He had always wanted to know people with super powers. Now it was his chance to. "I don't know. Do you E?" Percy asked his daughter. "I've never tried before. Maybe I will when we get to camp," said Echo. Zack nodded, that seemed like a good idea. "Zack, it's my turn to ask you a question," said Percy. "Shoot," said Zack.

"Do you have any of the usual Half-Blood problems?" asked Percy. "No. I'm a little hyper active but no ADHD. No Dyslexia, actually I love to read, especially Stephen King and comic books. I'm not even lactose intolerant like Frank," Zack said. Echo looked at Percy wide-eyed. "Uncle Frank is lactose intolerant," said Echo, sounding very surprised. Percy gave Zack a look that screamed "_Oh, crap_!" then Zack looked at her confusedly. "I thought you read the books," Zack said. "I'm still working on '_The Lost Hero_'. Dyslexia is a horrible thing for someone who loves to read," said Echo. Zack looked at her understandingly and nodded.

"Wait, I have a question for you Zack," said Echo. "What is it?" asked Zack. He would answer any question she had. She was pretty cute, but he would let her find out he thought that. Relationships never really worked out to his favor. "Who do you think your dad is?" she asked. Zack stared straight at the highway in front of them. He had no idea. "I don't know. I love to write music and play instruments, although I'm not that good. I'm good with machines, using them I mean. I can't really make things. I love the water, but I'm not water proof like Percy, and I can't read the water to navigate. I enjoy some fights, especially when I win, but I don't go looking for them. I'm clever and enjoy a good laugh, but I'm not pranking people twenty four/seven. I love the theater and movies, but I promised myself I would never come anywhere near wine or any form of alcohol. I also loves gems and thinking about what would happen after we die, but I'm terrified of the dark. I love flying and electricity and stuff too, but I'm terrified of heights. It seems like that for everything I have that gets me near a dad, there's something that puts me back at square one," Zack explained.

"Well, I bet that you'll be claimed almost as soon as we get to camp. Your dad probably didn't want to claim you until you were safe," said Percy. "I hope so," said Zack. The last three hours of the drive were in relative silence. The only noise coming from the car was the radio and Echo's eventual snoring. Zack didn't understand how she could be so tired. Sure a lot had happened, but it was only half after one by the time she fell asleep. After a while Zack started to feel a little drowsy himself. His family often went on road trips, so the car had a relaxing effect on him. But then he smelled strawberries.

"We're here!" Zack screamed. Echo sat upright so fast the seat belt locked. "What's going on?" asked Echo, terrified, but half-awake. "You have arrived at your destination. Thank you for riding Bus Jackson and enjoy your stay at Camp Half-Blood," Percy said, getting out of the car. "Ugh, dad, enough with the dad jokes," said Echo, not terribly impressed with her father's sense of humor. "If I don't tell jokes, the only way to get you to laugh then is to do this," said Percy. He then proceeded to tickle his daughter. She jumped so high she leapt into the tree by the car. Literally.

When she got down Zack asked "How did you do that?" "I do gymnastics and I probably got a little boost from the rain that fell here recently," Echo explained. "Alright, come on guys. Let's go meet Chiron," said Percy. "Oh yes. This is turning into the best day ever!" said Zack.

The three walked to the Big House. They saw people moving inside, one on a wheel chair and another standing up. The standing figure was limping however, and one could see that he was terribly disfigured. Zack knew exactly who it was and ran to the door. As soon as he got on the porch, Zack knocked, trying very hard not to break down the door. Zack was so excited about who answered the door. It was Hephaestus, Greek god of machinery. He looked rather sad to see Zack. As he knelt down Zack asked "Is something wrong, Lord Hephaestus?" "No, son, stand up," said Hephaestus, something was off. Hephaestus didn't get emotional, even with Aphrodite as his wife, he wasn't very good with feelings. "Are you my father? That would be awesome!" said Zack.

"Zack, that's why I'm here," Hephaestus said as he brought him to the couch, "Zack, you're not like most Half-Bloods." "In what way?" Zack asked. "You… you weren't born physically," said Hephaestus. "Wait, so like Athenian kids? Is she my mom?" asked Zack, really confused. "No, you were born of your mother in CNY, but you were, an experiment. I was tasked with taking a source of DNA from every major god or goddess on Olympus, and turning it into sperm so that your mother would give birth. You see, the gods need a new champion now. We don't know what it is, but Apollo warned us of a huge threat on the way, and you are the only Half-Blood to figure it out on your own, as well as read the books your brother half-brother Rick wrote," explained Hephaestus.

"Wait, when you said every major god and goddess, does that include the ones like Hera and Artemis?" asked Zack, just trying to get the story straight. "They were rather argumentative at first, but after I informed them that this would not break their vows of chastity and virginity respectively, they resentfully complied," explained Hephaestus. "Why did they do it at all?" asked Zack.

"The spirit of Delphi normally goes through the Oracle, but Apollo sensed the danger of this one and allowed himself to write this prophecy," explained Hephaestus as he handed Zach a piece of paper. Zack unfolded it and read it aloud.

_In twelve plus one days,_

_The boy must begin the journey without delay._

_The child of the twelve and a mortal one,_

_Will do what no previous hero has done._

_He must journey to the end of the gods' reach,_

_Then learn the lesson that none can teach,_

_Then upon the journeys end_

_Fail to see a friend again._

_This all will occur in the time of days thirteen,_

_To be back at camp on Tuesday the thirteenth. _

_This must be completed before that noon,_

_Or all on earth will face all doom._

Everyone just stared at each other with terror. The most terrifying part of this was, much as with most prophecies, it was so unclear. But another thing was off. This was parchment. In the books, the gods had managed to keep with the times. "Why is this parchment?" Zack asked. "The prophecy was written almost one thousand years ago. Look at the top left corner," said Hephaestus. Zack looked and saw that it was dated 3/29/1015. "The prophecy couldn't be about me. It was dated for the eleventh century," said Zack. "Look at the bottom right corner," ordered Hephaestus. Zack did, and saw that it read "Give to Zack Adrian on the twenty-ninth of March in the year 2015."

"Alright, now that that's straightened out, what can we make of the rest of this?" asked Chiron. Percy was the first to speak, "I can understand the fourth and fifth lines. I've experienced them both." "I understand those lines too," said Zack, "The end of gods' reach obviously refers to Alaska. Do what no previous hero has done, I have to bring someone back from the dead. If that's the case, Chiron assign me a quest, in thirteen days. I know exactly who to bring on my quest." "Just who would that be Mister Adrian?" asked Chiron. "I need to bring Echo Jackson, and Ned Tyson," said Zack.


	4. The Preparation

I do not own PJatO, HoO, Spider-Man, or Avengers.

**Chapter 4: The Preparation**

"No, no, no, no, and no!" screamed Percy, "You are not bringing my daughter on a quest!" "Why not, dad? This wouldn't be my first one. And you went on a quest like three days after you found out you were a half-blood," pointed out Echo. "I wasn't my daughter!" said Percy. "But you were Sally's son," said Chiron. "I went there to save her!" screamed Percy. "One of them needs someone back too, Percy," said Annabeth through the Iris message, "Echo can you leave the room for a second? Take Zack to the tetherball court." "Alright," said a defeated Echo. Zack and Echo left to go the play volleyball while the four adults duked it out.

"Percy," said Hephaestus, "I would like to remind you that Zack is one twelfth Apollo's son. If he feels that he needs your daughter on the quest, it might be a good idea." "Percy, I know what's going on here," said Annabeth. "There's nothing going on. I just don't want my daughter going to the Underworld," said Percy. He crossed his arms. Having inherited his father's stubbornness, this could be a long, uphill battle. "Are you going to make me drag it out into the open? This is your last chance to surrender," warned Annabeth. She was the favorite daughter of Athena. If there was anyone to shut down Percy, it would be her.

"Alright. Remember that your old activities director and god-cousin are going to hear it. You don't want her going because this would be her first quest, and time out, with a boy," said Annabeth. She had drawn blood. Percy uncrossed his arms but continued glaring at her. "I don't know what you're talking about," denied Percy. "Percy, I love you, I've been with you for years. I'm also the daughter of the goddess of battle strategy, so I can read my opponent like an open book. You're afraid of Echo growing up," finalized Annabeth. Percy caved in the same way he did when Echo had been little. "Alright. Fine, you wanna send your daughter to the Underworld, fine by me. Just know that if anything happens to her, I will personally take that boy so far under the water, no one will know whether he died by drowning or pressure," said Percy.

Percy was about to leave the room, but then Annabeth stopped him. "Seaweed Brain. Come over here," she commanded. "What do you want?" asked Percy, still mad at his wife for forcing him to concede. "You're going to tell Echo she can go. Not Chiron, you. Then you are going to help Chiron and the year-rounders make the finishing touches. Finally, before you do any of those things, you are going to make sure both Echo and I know how much you love us," said Annabeth, once again becoming the Wise Girl to his Seaweed Brain.

"I'll do the first two, but I can't do the last one," said Percy, starting to relax. "Why not?" asked Annabeth. "Because it's impossible. I love you both too much to be able to tell you how much," said Percy, finally becoming his old self. "Tell you what Percy: You try your hardest to make sure Echo knows, there just might be a little surprise waiting for you back home," said Annabeth in her best sexy voice. Percy's eyes lit up like it was Christmas morning. "I love you. See you as soon as possible. Bye," Percy said as he broke the Iris Message. Percy then turned to Chiron and asked "What can I do first?"

Zack and Echo were playing tetherball and so far it was a tie. They had also been playing for ten minutes and were starting to get bored with it. "Do you wanna stop?" asked Echo. "Yeah, I know that I would beat you, but I didn't know that it would take this long," said Zack jokingly. "Well, you may have DNA from all the gods, but _I_ have the battle strategy of Athena and the stubbornness of my dad," said Echo rather haughtily. "Do you think he'll let me go?" asked Echo rather nervously.

"I think probably so. Hephaestus is a god and is as close as he can get to Apollo. Chiron usually understands that there are reasons, whether in one's control or not, that there are certain reasons people pick other people for quests. Your mom knows that I'm technically your brother, and would never let anything happen to you," said Zack, "All in all, it's three against one. Percy will calm down." Zack all of a sudden looked straight ahead, rather shocked about something, but Echo couldn't tell what. "What's wrong?" asked Echo. "If all the Greek gods are my parents, where in the name of Olympus am I going to be sleeping tonight?" asked Zack now looking at Echo with really wide eyes. Echo thought about it for a second. "For the first time in my life… I have no idea," she responded.

"My "gift of prophecy" tells me that they're wrapping up. I think we should head back," said Zack. "All right. Do you ever actually get visions though?" asked Echo inquisitively as they began to walk back to the Big House. "In my dreams. I know that half-bloods tend to have weird dreams, but my dreams are of the next day or a week or a month in advance and it happens perfectly. Sometimes they're just flashes of a specific instance, other times they'll be an entire day," answered Zack. He had always known that there was something very special and put of the ordinary about him, but he hadn't thought that it'd be him being one twelfth related to Percy Jackson. He thought that that was just made up. Then again though, in a world with Spider-Man, Tony Stark, and S.H.I.E.L.D., perhaps it wasn't too out there.

"Do you think we have any freewill, when there's prophecy, and the Fates?" asked Echo philosophically. Zack wasn't too surprised by the philosophy. Some of her brothers included some of the great thinkers in history. "I think that we have freewill, but because we all have some kind of destiny, some other-worldly force helps to push us in a certain direction," said Zack. "That makes sense. Oh look we're here," said Echo. Zack opened the door and held it for Echo. As they walked in, Percy was walking out of the room where he, Chiron, and Hephaestus had been Iris Messaging Annabeth.

Percy scooped Echo up in a huge bear hug and lifted her off the ground. "Echo, you can go, and know that I just love you so, so, so, so, so much," Percy said. Every time Percy said the word "so," he gave her a kiss on the forehead. Chiron wheeled out, being pushed by Hephaestus, and Zack asked him, "I know that you have a lot to prepare for, but, since I have all of the Greek gods as my parents, which cabin should I sleep with?" Chiron thought hard about this, stroking his chin all the while. "Mister Adrian, I don't really suppose it matters. However, even though they are technically your parents, I would heavily advise against sleeping in the Artemis or Hera cabin. Unless Hephaestus knows whether or not they care?" said Chiron looking up towards Hephaestus. "Actually," said Hephaestus "Hera would prefer you not try to, and I'm quoting her directly here "set up shop," but if Artemis said that if her Hunters are here, and if they should allow you to sleep in the cabin, it would be all right with her."

"All right then. Any cabin except number two. If you would like, Percy, Annabeth, Echo and I are going to meet and greet the year rounders. Would you like to meet some of them?" invited Chiron. "As much as I would, I would be more interested in meeting Ned Tyson," responded Zack. "Do you know Ned?" asked Percy. "No, but I feel like I need to bring him on my quest, remember?" said Zack, "Whose son is he?" "Ned is a son of Bia. He is usually a very nice fellow, but if he gets mad, well, let us simply say you'd rather be around Bruce Banner when he's angry," said Chiron, "Are you sure you'd want him on a quest? He has the worst fatal flaw for any demi-god." "I'm sure. Please. Let me meet him," pleaded Zack. "All right," said Chiron, "but remember, I do not know if you will want him on your quest."

The group walked to the dining pavilion, but before the group left the cabin, Hephaestus did the flash thing where he teleported away. When the group got there the current campers were at their tables and waiting for Chiron so they could eat. Chiron gave Zack a short introduction and then everyone could eat. Zack was eating with the people at the Aphrodite table since they would know who was who. "Hey, um, how's it going?" asked Zack. "Oh, it's as good as it can get when you're in the forest for all eternity," said one Aphrodite girl named Casey. "What's wrong here?" asked Zack. He didn't understand how this person could be so shallow. He wasn't a big camper either, but this wasn't your average camp.

"I just miss my family, that's all. I haven't seen them since Christmas," replied Casey. Now Zack felt bad. "Oh, I get it. Do any of you guys know who Ned Tyson is?" he asked. Everyone there stopped and stared. Some of the girls giggled a little bit. "Why would you wanna talk to him?" a girl named Sarah asked. Zack was mad now. He knew how it felt to be treated like an outsider. "You heard I'm partially a son of Apollo, and he's going to go on a quest with me to save the world," he said angrily. That shut her up. A boy named John pointed to a table where a muscle-y red headed kid was sitting. Zack got up and walked over to his table.

"Hi," said Zack. The kid with red hair looked up, but didn't say anything. "Are you Ned? Ned Tyson?" Zack asked. The kid nodded but didn't respond vocally. "I'm going on a quest in thirteen days. I need you to come with me. Will you please?" asked Zack nicely. "Why do you want me?" asked Ned. He looked scared. Zack didn't understand why Chiron thought Zack should be scared of him. "I'm partially a son of Apollo, and thus have a minor gift of prophecy. Something tells me that either A. I need you to come with me or B. you to come because there's something you need to see. Whatever the reason I am practically begging on my knees for you to come. Will you?" pleaded Zack. "Do you know who my mother is?" Ned asked. "Bia, goddess of force, sister of Nike and Kratos. So, if Chiron was telling the truth about what happens when you get mad, that's all the more reason to have you on my team; I'm not scared of you, and I want to be your friend. Can I have lunch with you? I think we should get to know each other," offered Zack. Ned smiled the happiest smile Zack had ever seen on anyone's face.

Chiron and Percy watched and listened to Zack storm off from the Aphrodite table, and transform into a happy person to talk to Ned. "That's good. Ned normally just sits alone and won't talk to anyone, not even if they try to talk to him first. Zack doesn't give up. He'll be a great leader on this quest," said Percy. "I'm not so sure Percy," responded Chiron. "What's wrong?" Percy asked looking very confused. "Every hero is supposed to have a fatal flaw, or at least something that keeps them from being higher than the gods, correct?" asked Chiron. "Yes. What about it?" Percy asked.

"The way Zack stomped off after the conversation with the Aphrodite table, I think Zack might be too eager for justice from his own misfortunes. In other words, he might be too, I don't know, what's the word, convicted, for lack of a better term. That can be very, very dangerous, maybe even more so than hubris," explained Chiron. "No. He's not. I can tell. If you don't believe me, I'll have Piper talk to him tomorrow. She's the best one to ask about emotions," Percy offered. "Alright, but, I'm just worried. I can't get any sort of read off of him. The multitude of DNA might be more than anyone planned for," stated Chiron. "We've been much further under our heads than this Chiron. Even if the boy does have one or two screws loose, it may be for the best," said Percy.


	5. The First Official Day

I do not own PJatO, HoO, Ariadne, August, Spider-Man, or Avengers.

**Chapter 5: The First Official Day**

That night Zack had slept in the Bia cabin with Ned, and the two had a lot in common. They had quite a bit in common. They both enjoyed Marvel, though Ned's favorite hero was Captain America. Ned was a pretty organized guy, the cabin wasn't too messy. He apparently had a sister. When they woke up it was about an hour before any other campers woke up, so while Ned went to take a shower, Zack just put a lot of roll on deodorant on.

The first few campers started to show up. They were all Apollo kids. There was one kid that Zack took a particular interest in. His name was Bob Bright. Zack told him about how Hephaestus and the other gods and goddesses had to use all their DNA to make him, and Bob just thought it was cool. "Hey, so Bob, what's your Apollo thing?" Zack asked him. "I'm a writer," he said. "That's way cool. So do I. I'm actually working on a book now," Zack told him. "Really? What's it about?" as Zack was about to answer a new swarm of cars came in. "I'll sleep in the Apollo cabin tonight and tell you, okay? I wanna go meet more of my brothers and sisters," Zack said. "Oh yeah, that's gonna be the Athenians. Go knock yourself out. I'll see you tonight," Bob said as he walked off to his cabin.

Zack was all about meeting the campers as soon as they got out of their cars. He was talking with some of his partial brothers and sisters. He really made good friends with one girl named Ariadne from the Athena cabin. "Oh, yeah, August is here," Zack said. "Oh, great. I'll see you round then. Bye!" she said as she went away to see her girlfriend. Hephaestus kids showed up next and Zack loved talking shop with them. He got ultra-excited when Leo showed up. "I would have thought you were in collage by now though," thought Zack. "I am. I just come here in the summer to see all my cousins," explained Leo. "That's sweet. I'll have to talk with you later. I have some great ideas your cabin will love, and I'll need a few gizmos for my quest in a couple weeks. Oh, look, more cars. See ya round!" said Zack as he ran off to meet the next batch of "siblings".

All morning long Zack was talking with and helping so many people, some of the returning campers thought that at first he was a satyr. After he cleared the confusion he was getting along great with everybody. Zack particularly enjoyed hanging out with the kids from the Sophia cabin. Sophia, being the Greek goddess of philosophical wisdom, endowed her children with a great ability to have conversation and to debate. After all the campers had shown up, Chiron called for lunch. After a brief introduction and a blessing for the new season, and after everyone had given their sacrifice, everyone was eating. Zack was sitting with the Hephaestus kids talking shop, especially this one kid named Mikey Hour.

"But wait, what were you thinking for the track then?" asked Mikey. The two were currently discussing an idea for a hover board. "Well, I was thinking that what could be used would be a–" someone tapped Zack on the shoulder. When he turned around, Zack saw Sarah, and he was not happy about it. He must have shown it because she instantly looked down at her tray. "What is it?" Zack asked. "I wanted to apologize to Ned for my comment earlier, but I'm afraid he might "hulk-out". I hoped that you would come with me so that I could tell him I'm sorry," she pleaded. Zack looked down and gave a small smile. Maybe there was hope after all. "Okay, but stay behind me a little bit. He may or may not have heard you," Zack said. Sarah nodded.

Zack and Sarah walked over to the Bia table. "Oh, hey Zack. What's up?" asked Ned. "I have someone that wants to apologize to you," Zack said and he stepped to the side so that Ned could see Sarah. Ned instantly turned as red as a radish and looked down at his food. "Ned, I, I, I, just wanted to say I'm sorry for what I've both to and about you that last couple years. There's a very good explanation for why I did it," began Sarah. "There'd better be a pretty good explanation if he, or I, for that matter are going to forgive you," said Ned's sister, Maya. Maya had dark hair, and black eyes, she was tall but not muscle-y like her brother.

"It is. I know that Aphrodite campers are supposed to be really good with emotions, but I was scared. I need to be honest now Ned. I… I have a crush on you," explained Sarah. Sarah turned so red she was almost purple, and she looked down at her plate. Ned looked up now, very red but not as much, his eyebrows arched skeptically. "Really?" asked Ned, not too sure if she was to be trusted. All Sarah could do was nod, rather quickly too. Ned smiled warmly. "Do you wanna sit with us?" Ned asked. Maya didn't look to happy, but she had definitely calmed down. Zack looked at Sarah a little closer.

She was telling the truth. One could see it in her green eyes, the way she tossed her chestnut hair around. The way her in shape, but not heavily toned body hugged him and played with him. Zack felt pretty good for Ned. He left and went back to the Hephaestus table and continued talking with Mikey, who after lunch was over said he would get right to work on the hover board. Percy took Zack aside and brought him over to Piper Mclean. "Hello Zack. Percy's told me a little about you," she said. Zack looked at her and could immediately see what Jason saw in her. "Nice to meet you too Pipe," Zack responded. She was stunned. "How do you know my name?" asked Piper. "Rick actually wrote those books about us," said Percy. Piper laughed, and it was a very beautiful laugh.

"He always said he would, but I never actually thought he _would_," chuckled Piper, "How much do you know about me?" "You have charm-speak because you're a daughter of Aphrodite. In the books, I don't know if you still are but perhaps you're married by now, you dated Jason, son of Jupiter who is also the brother of Thalia who is the daughter of Zeus. Your dad is a famous actor. You became leader of the Aphrodite cabin after you came back from your first quest with Leo and Jason. You also mastered the snake song and put the snake people Athenians under your control when you went to Greece," said Zack. Piper was obviously impressed. "Yes, Jason and I are married, but he has business to attend to in New Rome. I wanted to talk with you a little bit," said Piper. "Anything in particular?" asked Zack. "Oh, just likes, dislikes, talents, etc. think of it as a camp interview," explained Piper, "Percy, go teach your combat classes. This'll be a while." Percy nodded and left.

"Would you mind if while we did this we walked around, maybe in the woods? I don't like standing around," Zack asked. "Okay, let's go," Zack blinked and then they teleported to Zeus' Fist. The two looked at each other sacredly. "I guess I know one of my powers. How did I do that?" asked Zack. "Since you have the DNA of Apollo, you might have light travel," suggested Piper. "What's light travel?" Zack asked, "I've never heard of any Apollo kids having that ability." "It's like Nico's shadow travel but with light," explained Piper. Zack nodded like he understood, and they began to walk. "So what do you do exactly?" asked Piper.

"Well, um, I play the saxophone, I enjoy thinking up different kinds of inventions. I am really great at handing out relationship advice but can't seem to get a girl or a boyfriend. What else? Oh, right, I run track and swim, though I'm really a thrower in track. I love talking about the deepest of subjects. I love reading almost anything I can get my hands on. I am an aspiring author, and, I think that's it," said Zack. "Dislikes?" asked Piper. "Simple. There are only eight things I really don't like: 1. Haters 2. Fakes 3. Bullies 4. Stereotypes 5. Bugs 6. Mushrooms 7. Pickles 8. Cliffhangers. In that order," said Zack. "Any sports? Talents? Anything else you wanna tell me?" asked Piper. Zack had no idea why Piper was interested in his life. New guy or not, this was getting a little weird. "I love dancing. I can do swing dancing, break, hip hop. It's all in the rhythm," Zack said.

"Alright. Can you teleport us back to the main camp? I need to talk to Percy," said Piper. Zack was perfectly fine to end the interrogation. He blinked and there they were, back in camp. Other campers looked at him with huge amazement. The Hermes cabin was talking amongst itself about all the pranks they could pull if they could get Zack to work with them. Piper walked off and Clarisse LaRue walked up to him. "So, you're Hack," she said. "Okay, what did I do to you? I've been at camp for less than twenty four hours," stated Zack. He knew what Clarisse was like from the books. "I don't have anything against you yet. I just have to teach you swordplay. Come on while we test you for armor and swords. To the Hephaestus cabin," ordered Clarisse. "By the way," said Zack "My name's Zack. Zack Adrian." "Whatever," said Clarisse as she and Zack left for the Hephaestus Cabin.

When they got there, Mikey already had a sword prototype prepared for Zack. "Try it out. It's just a prototype so I can make it better," Mikey explained. Zack took the sword and sung it slowly a couple times with his dominant hand, the right side. "Now, go outside and check out what happens if you swing the sword with your left hand. FYI, swing it a different number of times does a different thing, and the count resets at ten," explained Mikey. The sword was cool so far. Zack wondered what it did with his left hand. Zack went outside, looked toward the beach since there was no one there, and swung once with his left hand. A laser sent a beam of heat and energy to the lake. Zack moved the sword and the laser ended. "_What happens with two swing_?" thought Zack. Once again, looking at the beach, Zack swung the sword with his left hand, this time twice. This time what came out of the tip was a miniature tornado. It was small, but still had pretty strong winds.

Zack kept goofing around and saw that there was some pretty intense stuff. Other things that came out of the tip of the sword included but was not limited to: oil, smoke, jets of water, flashes of light for blinding. It was a great sword. It was perfectly balanced, too. Zack went back in and asked Mikey, "What, on Olympus or Earth, did you think was wrong with this thing? It is the coolest thing I've seen." "I don't know, it might have been balanced incorrectly or something. What's your favorite output?" Mikey asked. "If I had to pick, I'd say my favorite is the flashes. That'll be a really great advantage. I had some ideas about my armor," said Zack. "What ideas?" Leo asked. He was always looking for ways to improve things. "The armor, I know we try to go for traditional here, but it's not like we have it on quests. Is there a way to work the Celestial Bronze into like, a shirt? That way, it'd be light, less awkward, and we could use it on quests," suggested Zack.

Leo's eyes lit up like he had gotten every possible Christmas at once. "I don't know why we hadn't thought of that before. Hang on, give me, hmm, about twenty seconds," Leo babbled as he rushed to work. So many sparks were flying and unusual sound were being made. Zack was beginning to wonder if this is what the cabin always sounded like when just as soon as it had started, it stopped. Leo came back with a hoodie that kind of, glowed. Zack couldn't tell if had been made of Celestial Bronze or if there was Celestial Bronze in it. Leo hand it to him and said "Try it on." Zach put it on, and while it was a little bit heavier than a normal hoodie, it was definitely lighter than full battle armor. "It is made of Celestial Bronze. It works as a good defense, but, just in case you do need something a little sturdier, put the hood up," explained Leo.

Zack put the hood up and the hoodie transformed into full battle armor, complete with helmet. "How do I reverse it?" asked Zack. He had been right. This armor was packing some serious pounds. "Flip the helmet off backwards," said Leo. As soon as Zack did that, it became instantly lighter and he could stand up straight. Zack turned to Clarisse and said "So, how 'bout that training now, hmm?" "Let's go short stuff," said Clarisse as they marched out.

As Zack and Clarisse were just starting to head to the arena to train, Piper finally found Percy. "So, how'd it go?" asked Percy. "He's just a normal half-blood. It's gonna be a bumpy road, but hey, it is for all of us isn't it?" asked Piper. The two laughed for a little bit and the sound of storm rolling in came. "He's here soon. What did the favorite daughter of the love goddess promise the Roman boy?" asked Percy slyly. Piper laughed and pushed Percy. "You will never let that go will you?" asked Piper. "Not one… single… chance," said Percy. Jason finally landed in front of them on Tempest. As soon as Jason got off, he nodded to the horse/wind spirit and the creature took off.

"Well, look what mighty Roman big shot hath graced our humble camp," Percy said as he bowed. Jason just smacked Percy upside the head in a joking manner and the two hugged. "Great to see you dude. It's been a long year," said Percy. "The Senate's been riding me so much I may as well be wearing a saddle," said Jason, "Is anyone else here?" "No," Percy said. "Frank and Hazel aren't here yet. Annabeth is working on a new case for her firm. Actually, I almost forgot, Leo's here!" said Piper, "But before you say hello to _that_ member of the seven, we have someone we need you to meet." "What makes this half-blood so promising?" asked Jason. "He's your brother," said Percy.

The training session with Clarisse was going quite well. Even with the full armor, Zack was doing better than most beginners. To him, it was just like a dance. There was a rhythm to the fight, and once you found it, you could do it forever. Zack was constantly switching the hand that held the sword, trying to teach himself to do it without thinking. He was getting good at it too. A couple swipes with his left and would unleash a tornado, and then the next swipe would be a lunge to attempt to disarm Clarisse. After a while, both fighters were getting exhausted. Only one though, had a secret weapon. Zack opened his mouth and let out a Hulk level scream that sent Clarisse flying back and caused her to drop her sword. Clarisse scrambled to get to it, but Zack was quicker. He got there first and used the second sword to checkmate Clarisse. Angrily, she admitted defeat. "Are you hustling me? Even Percy's not that good with a sword. Are you sure you haven't taken any lessons?" asked Clarisse. "I swear on the river Styx I have not taken a single sword lesson before today," thunder rumbled, but nothing bad happened to him, so he was telling the truth.

Just as Zack answered Clarisse's question, Jason burst through the door and looked around for Zack. As soon as he saw Zack, Jason scrambled over. "You're Jason Grace. Nice to finally meet you," said Zack. "How do you know who I am?" asked Jason. Zack looked around and saw that Percy and Piper were just walking in. "Didn't you tell him?" Zack asked Piper and Percy. "We didn't have a chance too. As soon as we told him you two were related, he bolted," explained Piper. "Tell me what?" asked Jason. No one had answered his questions. "Rick wrote the books," explained Percy. Jason smiled and shook his head in "That son of a gun," manner. "Jackson. Your protégé here cheats!" screamed Clarisse. "What makes you say that?" asked Percy. "He beat me!" said Clarisse, "And then he lied and said he'd never used a weapon before the training." "Don't say I lied. I swore on the river Styx just before Jason walked in," defended Zack.

"What makes you so good then?" asked Percy. "It's just like dancing," said Zack. Clarisse laughed but Percy looked at Zack intensely. "Please explain," said Percy. "You get a rhythm going, and then it makes sense. For every move you make there has to be a certain one to come after it, just like a routine for dancing. You keep going until you see a chance to break the pattern and throw your opponent off," said Zack. Percy continued to stare at Zack. It was a look of intense concentration. Percy then looked at Jason, and they seemed to be connected mind to mind. They nodded at each other and then smiled. "I don't think I've ever heard a simpler explanation," said Jason. "It's short and to the point. I liked it," said Percy. "Percy," said Zack. "What?" Percy responded. "Did you explain to Jason _why_ we're related?" asked Zack. Percy face palmed himself. "Okay. I did not. It requires a bit of an explanation though, so I'll tell you at lunch," Percy said. "Alright. Can you fly?" Jason asked. "I cannot. I-" Zack was about to answer, but then the dinner horn rang. "Let's go get some food. Beating Clarisse really gave me an appetite," Zack said. Clarisse charged at Zack and then just before she could touch him, Zack light-traveled away from the arena. Clarisse ended up falling on her face and Jason just looked at everyone in shock.

At the dining pavilion, Zack saw Echo and Ned. "Hey! Echo! Ned! Come over here!" shouted Zack. Ned left Sarah and Echo left here Athena friends to come over to Zack. "What's the sitch?" asked Echo. "So, after tomorrow we have eleven days to prepare for the journey to Alaska. With that in mind, between now and then, we need to have some training sessions together," said Zack. "Okay. When should we do them?" asked Echo. "We should start tomorrow," Zack said. "Why do we need to train together? How hard could it be to go from working alone to working with two other people?" Ned asked. "Very. And if we train together, not only can we learn different ways to set up "combos", if you will, but we also can learn each other's strengths and weaknesses. Also, by training together, some of us have powers, so perhaps the other people can think of new ways of using those powers," ordered Zack. "Oh, wait, Zack, I almost forgot. Today, since it's the first day of camp, is Capture the Flag," said Echo. "Really?" asked Zack excitedly. Whichever team he was on, would be the winner; thanks to his light traveling routine. "Whose team am I on?" asked Zack. "Once again, I don't think anyone can decide for you. You should know though, Ned and I are on different teams," said Echo.

Zack looked at his new friends. "Which of you is with Ares?" asked Zack. Echo raised here hand. "I'm going with Ned then. We're going to crush the other team," Zack high-fived Ned and looked at Echo. "So guys, let's sit together so we can figure out the best way to go about the training," Zack said. The group all went together to Ned's table and talked. Dinner went by uneventfully. The trio decided that the morning sessions would be the best time to work on training together after a much heavier than predicted debate. As soon as dinner ended everyone started to get into their respective teams to prepare for capture the flag. Ned and Zack said good-bye to Echo as she left to join the Athenians. Zack and Ned spoke to the head of the Apollo cabin to get their assignments. Zack was on offense, and Ned was on defense. Ned was actually one of the head of defense. He was one of the two people directly guarding the flag. Not that they would be doing much for long.

Zack said good-bye to Ned and they went to their respective posts, Ned at the yellow flag, Zack at the river. Chiron went over the rules and then the horn sounded. Zack grabbed the nearest soldier and then the two light-traveled to the flag. It was sunset, and Zack didn't want to take any risks, so he'd need someone to carry the flag while he defended him. Zack was a really good fighter, as it turned out. It wasn't just beginner's luck when he had beaten Clarisse. He had a natural talent… must have been the Ares and Athena in his blood. Eventually the two ran into some more on the yellow team. The friend that Zack had teleported with gave the flag to Zack. The thing was much heavier than it looked. It was now dark out, and light-traveling was no longer an option. The moon-light however though, seemed to give him some kind of, new strength. Zack carried the flag as more people tried to keep them from getting to the river. They had no defense though, and soon Zack and his entourage crossed the river. When they did, the grey and owl ridden flag transformed into a flag no one had ever seen.

They flag became the most beautiful shade of green, a deep forest green. In the middle was a blue Omega symbol. On the inside of the Omega was slightly smaller purple Alpha symbol. Around the Omega on the outside was twelve symbols. One for each of the twelve Olympians: There was a stark white lightning bolt for Zeus, a purple wedding band for Hera, Poseidon had a blue horse, and so on and so forth. Each Olympians' signature color had thing they stood for in order of their number. It was fantastic. What happened next was what really surprised Zack though. Everyone knelt before him. Zack was taken aback. "Chiron, what's going on?" Zack asked. Chiron slowly approached and asked him "Zack, you are aware of your origin, correct?" "Yeah, Hephaestus told me yesterday. What about it?" Zack asked. He was becoming more and more concerned with every passing second.

"I thought nothing of it. Now, however, your flag tells a different story. The last person to have that kind of flag was Genghis Kahn. Do you know exactly who he was?" Chiron asked Zack. "He was an emperor of the Mongol Empire. What about him?" Zack responded. "The Mongol Empire was the largest empire in the world. The reason he managed to get his empire so large, is because, he was the most powerful demigod to have ever existed. Now you bear his flag."


	6. The First Official Day (Part Two)

I do not own PJatO, HoO, or X-Men.

**Chapter 6: The First Official Day (Part Two)**

Zack blinked a couple times and tried to clear his head. "Did Genghis Kahn come from the twelve two?" asked Zack. "Yes. He had one difference though," Chiron began. "What would that be?" asked Zack. "He did not want to be. He shunned the gods and their ways. No one knows why. Only rumors remain. You though, clearly enjoy being a half-blood. You will be very powerful. I think though, that it would be best if you used caution with your powers," warned Chiron. "What happened to Genghis Kahn? The history books never tell the whole story. What _really_ happened to him?" Zack asked. He was getting scared. Even for Chiron, he was being extra cautious. "You are smart. He became too powerful. He became so strong, that the gods had to chain him in the legendary golden ropes as he could break any other bondage. He was then brought to Olympus and voted upon. His fate… was death," explained Chiron. Zack was scared. The only other person like him and gone insane with power and was voted upon by the gods to die. Suddenly the weight of the banner became far too heavy. The air became increasingly heavy as well. His vision began to swim and he started to sway. Suddenly, he passed out. The banner came tumbling down. Just before the banner hit his head though, something fast and silent pulled the up and activated the armor. The armor was switched on just in time to save Zack from getting killed by the falling banner.

Zack woke up in the infirmary. Now he was too terrified to breathe. Apparently, his next breath could be his last. At that moment, Will Solace came into the room and saw that Zack was awake. "Shouldn't you be in medical school?" Zack asked weakly. "Percy told me about Ricky, so you won't have to explain to me why you know who I am. I figured he would anyways. To answer your question however, no. I stay here full time. Free food, no rent to pay. All I have to do is heal whoever needs healing. I don't want the spotlight, and I'm not a big fan of cities," Will replied, "Now, how are you feeling? The banner landed on you after you fell. Lucky for you, someone managed to activate your battle armor before it fell on you, so the brain damage shouldn't be too bad. You're also talking, so that's another good sign." "Did you hear about me?" asked Zack. "Yes, I did. I wouldn't have needed to though, I saw the flag," responded Will. "Have you ever heard of someone having the ability to light travel?" Zack asked. "Apollo kids can do it all the time. How do you think doctors manage to get to so many patients?" asked Zack. "I guess," said Zack. He really didn't know what to think at this point.

Suddenly there was a bright flash and Artemis was standing above Will and Zack. Will knelt but Zack just continued lying in a cot. "Have I done something to displease you Artemis?" asked Zack. "Yes," Artemis replied. She looked stern right now, but, she didn't look mad. She looked, tight. "Please, tell me what I did so that I may right it. I don't want to die," Zack said. He was worried that anything he did wrong might be the thing that makes the gods re-think allowing him to live. Artemis, without changing her face, said "Don't ever scare me like that again." She then broke down and cried. She leaned over and hugged Zack so tight he almost passed out again. "Need… air…" Zack choked out. Artemis let go, but knelt near Zack's head and kissed his forehead. "What's going on?" Zack asked. He was still so confused, normally Artemis hated men. "Zack, you are aware of my vow of virginity, correct?" Artemis asked Zack. "Yes," Zack answered. Something clicked and now everything made sense. Artemis' vow of virginity meant she couldn't have a child. Now Zack was the closest thing she had to a child. "Lady Artemis, I understand. It is a pleasure to be the only demi-god that can claim you as my mother," Zack said softly.

"Please," Artemis began, "I see the children of Athena and Aphrodite call their mothers "Mom," and I would like that as well. Would you kindly refer to me as mom?" Artemis asked. Zack smiled. This was such a touching moment Will was crying in the corner. "Of course… Mom," Zack said. "Thank you very much. By the way, I was watching you in the game, and I shot an invisible and dissolving bow at your hood to activate your armor," Artemis informed. "Thank you very much. Now, about my current situation, I understand that your brother is in charge of healing, but…" Zack trailed off. Artemis gave Zack a mischievous wink and Apollo appeared dressed in nothing but a towel… wrapped around his hair. Will and Artemis averted their eyes well Zack just sat there and screamed. He was terrified. "IT'S SO TINY!" Zack screamed. Apollo snapped his fingers and clothes flashed onto his body. After they had calmed Zack down, Apollo lectured Artemis. "Why do you always do that?! As soon as I get out of the shower, you teleport me somewhere. What is it this time?" Apollo screamed. Artemis just pointed at Zack.

Artemis just pointed at Zack and his current state. Apollo nodded and snapped his fingers. Zack was fully healed and standing up. "Oh, Apollo, before you go, could you give me a healing factor so that this doesn't happen again?" Zack asked. "Two things: One. Call me Dad, kid. Everyone in the twelve is fine with you referring to us as Mom or Dad respectively except for Hera. Two. You already have a healing factor. That's why you're not dead," Apollo informed Zack. "Could you make it as strong as Wolverine's then? I'm going to go out on a limb and assumed he's one of yours. That's why he's got such a strong healing factor," Zack said. "That's correct. Fine, since I know if I don't Artemis will kill me," Apollo said as he snapped his fingers. Zack felt really good now, a lot stronger. "Anything else you want Zack?" Artemis asked. Artemis was trying to act like Wonder-Mom. She must have _really_ wanted a kid. "Could you have Hermes send me a list of all the abilities I get from the Olympians? I want to know what I can do in a battle," Zack requested.

Suddenly there was _another_ flash of light and Hermes was there. At least he was fully clothed, even if it was a track outfit. Hermes was carrying an envelope in his right hand and handed it to Zack. "Thanks, dad," said Zack. Zack opened the envelope and there was a list of talents and abilities Zack would have now that he knew he was a half-blood. "_Hey_," said George, "_Got any rats_?" Zack opened up his will and brought a rat in to the infirmary through an open window. Zack took it and then handed it to George and Martha. "_Thanks, kid. You know, you're the first one to give us a rat_," Martha said in Zack's head. "I'll consider myself part of an elite club then. Thank you all, now, though, I have to go practice my new list of abilities," Zack announced. Just as Zack was about to walk out of the door, Artemis grabbed Zack by the shoulder and turned him towards her. She then hugged Zack, and it felt cold. It was not a bad cold, like one might sense in a bad snowstorm, but the kind of cold you would feel on a winter's night drinking hot cocoa. Zack smiled and hugged her back.

Artemis let him go, straightened his hair, and then allowed him to depart. After Zack and Will left the infirmary, Apollo and Hermes looked at Artemis affectionately, like the family they were. "You really care about him, don't you?" Apollo asked his sister. "Of course I do. He is the closest thing I have to a son. And brother, well you maybe the wielder of prophecies, I can already understand that Zack will avoid Genghis' fate," Artemis predicted. "Are you sure you wanna take that bet Artemis?" Hermes asked her. Hermes cared or Artemis just as much as Apollo did, and the Fates enjoyed playing games, with humans and immortals. "No, but he is only child, and I shall have to do my best to hope that he does."

Everyone was just filing out of the campfire and to their cabins as Zack got out of the infirmary. Zack was so happy he was flying, not just figuratively either. Thanks to his list, it was revealed to Zack that he can now fly, just like Jason. He would do well to practice these abilities to their limit. Zack arrived at the Apollo cabin the same time that Bob did. Bob actually looked a lot like Apollo, except a little bit shorter. Zack and Bob went into the cabin and talked all about music, poerty, books, and other Apollo like things until Will Solace finally shut off the lights.


	7. Training Day

I do not own PJatO, HoO, X-Men, Captain Marvel, She-Hulk, Spider-Man, or Avengers.

**Chapter 7: Training Day**

Zack had gotten up at the crack of dawn and prepared the arena. He wanted to see what both Ned and Echo were capable of. Around eight o'clock, Ned and Echo showed up. Zack had prepared an obstacle course only capable of being built by someone with the speed of Quicksilver. That was a gift of Hermes surprise, surprise. Regardless of whom the gift of speed was from, Ned and Echo were both exhilarated and terrified.

The course began a series of tires for a set of agility. Jumping from the last set of tires the person running the course would fall into a water pit. That may seem easy, but Zack had put a huge wall that one could only go under. You would have to go 16 feet under in order to go under it to be exact. After getting out of the tunnel of water, Ned and/or Echo would then have to weave and fight their way through at least one hundred spinning training dummies to get to the final portion of the test, and probably the most terrifying. They would then have to do the rock climb. The rock climb was already dangerous enough, what with the lava and the falling rocks and what not, but Zack had added a couple modifications. Now there were false steps, mirages caused by the Mist, was double sided to crush you if you didn't make it to the top in time, and had trick slides. It was now one hundred fold more dangerous than it was before.

Ned and Echo looked at each other nervously. Zack flew over to them and said "Hey guys! Cool right?" Ned and Echo just looked at Zack and pointed. "I know right!" Zack said, "I did this in like two hours too! I already ran it, so I know that it can be done. I'm timing you guys, so try your hardest. I got four minutes and two seconds. Who wants to go first?" Zack was babbling. He had gotten such a rush from completing the course that it gave him the world's biggest adrenaline rush. Echo and Ned just look at each other. Ned gave Echo a _pleeeeeeeaaaaaaaase_ look and she just crumbled. "I'll go," she groaned. "Great! On your mark, get set, go!" Zack exclaimed. As soon as he touched the button to start the timer Echo was off like a shot. She was going through the tires like they weren't even there. She jumped off of the last set of tires to dive into the pit filled with water. She was at the thirty second mark and was still going strong. Deeper and deeper Echo went as her lungs began to start screaming for oxygen. Eventually Echo found the hole in the wall and started to go through and climb up. She started to swim up as fast as she could, breaking the surface of the waster at the one minute mark. Climbing onto dry land and coughing rather heartily, she began to dodge and leap off of the dummies like a goat. There was a lot of them though and Echo could only clear a path once in a few rows by kicking them. Apparently Echo either had no weapon or didn't like to use it during training. At the two minute mark Echo reached the wall, and she began to climb. One third the way up the wall at the three minute mark she grew more and more daring. She began making bigger leaps and progressing quicker. She almost fell once or twice due to fake rocks but managed to never fall for the Mist tricks or fall in the slides. Echo reached the top and pressed the buzzer. The time read four minutes and fifteen seconds.

"Way to go Echo!" shouted Zack. Zack then commanded the winds to bring Echo down to the starting point where he and Ned were standing. "Your turn Ned," said Zack. Ned got ready to go, and Zack started the timer. Ned was jumping straight over the tires four at a time. He was at the water pool at the fifteen second mark. Ned leapt straight over the hundred feet in the air wall in the pool rather than swim under it, and was at the training dummies at the twenty second mark. Ned then proceeded to do the opposite of what Echo had done: Ned punched every single dummy in his way out of the ground, as in one punch set whatever he hit out of the ground. At the forty second mark he was at the base of the rock wall. Where Echo had started with caution and got more extreme, Ned leapt onto one side, and then the other. He repeated this, not carrying if he could grab onto a rock or handle, but was literally digging his fingers into the rock to leap off of. Ned was at the top at the fifty second mark and hit the buzzer.

Zack was shocked, but even more shocked when since he was too stunned to move, Ned simply jumped straight from the top of the rock wall to where Echo and Zack were standing. The vibration of Ned landing was so intense, that the other two fell on their butts. "Was that good?" Ned asked sheepishly. Zack couldn't say anything for a second or two, but then he broke into a huge smile. "Good? That's great! Ned, why didn't you tell me you were such a power house?" Zack asked proudly. "I thought it was obvious, given my mom. My half-sister should have given it away too," Ned said. "You never told me you had a half-sister. Who is it? Captain Marvel?" Zack asked. "No it's She-Hulk. She's the one that can transform her powers at will and control them. Unlike my half-cousin from the Ares cabin," said Ned. "You mean Bruce is Ares?" Zack asked. He would've pegged Bruce as Hephaestus or Athena due to his being a scientist. "Yeah. It was a blessing of Ares that allowed Bruce to survive the gamma blast. He knew what Bruce would be come if he survived," explained Ned.

"Are you like your half-cousin or half-sister? Can you transform into a huge green beast and magnify your powers?" asked Zack. "No, but the angrier I get, the stronger I get. I do turn a color, but not the one you'd expect," said Ned. "Which would be what, exactly?" Zack prodded. "Hmk," muttered Ned. He was embarrassed, but figured if he made a sound Zack might drop it. He had never before been so utterly wrong. "What?" asked Zack, "Can you repeat that? I couldn't hear you." "Hink," said Ned, just a little louder, but not too much. "Hmmm? I still can't hear you." "Pink. Can we drop it now?" Ned begged. Zack was fine to drop it, he just wanted to hear the truth. "Fine. Now, Ned, can you use your superb strength and get rid of this mess?" asked Zack. Ned nodded and then did something really, really, cool. He picked his hands up in the air, and brought them onto the ground so hard, the resulting vibrations shook the ground underneath the obstacle course and brought everything tumbling down.

"Good, now that that mess is taken care of, I think it's time we worked on our combo moves," Zack noted. "Combo moves?" Echo asked, "What is this, a videogame?" "No, but, think about it. If we manage to work so that our powers and abilities can be strung into combos against enemies, just imagine how much more easily we can fight whoever is trying to bring about the end of the world," Zack said. Ned and Echo thought about it, and then smiled. "Whaddaya got?" prompted Echo. "Glad you asked," said Zack. Zack ran off at super speed and brought back two training dummies. Zack put the first one down right in front of Ned. He then put the other one down about two hundred yards away. "Alright, here's the plan: Ned, you punch the dummy as hard as you can, without turning pink, in the direction of Echo. Echo, be ready, cause when he does this you need to kick the dummy as close to a ninety degree angle in the air as you can. Based off your jumping routine for the obstacle course I think it's safe to say you've got the leg power. Now, this will also be a trust exercise, because I'm not going to tell what exactly I'm going to do. I need you two trust me. Now, Echo, put some distance between you and Ned though. We know how hard he can hit," Zack ordered.

Echo ran as fast as she could to about halfway across the arena. Zack whistled and then Ned punched the dummy. It went sailing in a huge arch. Echo had to jump to try and kick it, but she kicked too soon and the statue hit her in the face. Zack had not expected everything to go right, but this was dangerous. Zach controlled the winds to bring Echo down slowly and then Ned began to panic when he saw the black eyes and the bloody nose. She was conscious, but didn't look happy about her situation. Zack sped to the infirmary, and brought back before Will noticed some ambrosia. Zack gave Echo some, and instantly she looked better. Her black eyes disappeared, and the bleeding from her nose stopped. She began to smile and boy was it a pretty smile. "I screwed that up, didn't I?" she said, with a little giggle at the end. "Just a little bit. Let's try that again, and this time, wait. You don't need to kick as soon as you're in the air," Zack aided, "In fact, you know what, I'll go full cabin 9 and tell you when to jump and then to kick, okay?" Echo nodded and then got back into position. Zack zipped the first dummy in front of Ned and then got where he needed to be. Zack whistled and went into full on analysis mode. HE waited until the dummy was at the peak of its arc to yell "Jump!" as Echo neared the dummy she was itching to kick it but wisely waited until Zack shouted "Now!" Echo brought her right jean clad leg up and into the head of the dummy, sending the thing straight into the sky. Zack then flew into the air at top speed to catch up with the flying training dummy. When he caught up to it, Zack froze it by forcing the thin air around it to gather, then Zack turned his hand on fire and punched it. He then shouted "Ned! Jump and toss it to Echo!" Ned jumped into the sky towards the racing dummy and threw it to Echo, speeding its decent tenfold. "Echo! Kick it to the other dummy!" Zack ordered. Zack then raced to the dummy on the ground as fast as he could. Just as he got there Echo kicked the first dummy and sent it flailing to the second one. Zack screamed and the force of the scream was so loud it forced the dummy racing towards its frozen flaming friend. The dummies hit each other and the resulting contact created a sonic boom. The blast went in all directions and blew back Echo and Zack, while Ned was thrown back up in the air. Ned landed and made a crater.

After Ned got out, Zack filled the hole back in and then faced Ned and Echo. "Great plan, right? I call it "The Sonic Boom"," Zack said. Ned looked excited but Echo was not as thrilled… she wasn't angry, but kind of emotionless, like the calm before the storm. "I guess, I mean, it _could_ work, but in reality, _would_ it work?" Echo asked. "You never know what kind of scenarios we're going to be in. I have dozens of these plans prepared, many of which we probably won't even be able to get to. Wait, I just remembered, what time is breakfast?" Zack asked. For the first time since he woke up, Zack was feeling very hungry. Apparently the "super powers" really push his body to the limit. "Right… about…" said Echo. Just as she finished that statement, the horn blew for campers to get up and have breakfast. Zack looked at Ned and Echo and said, "Okay, guys, we need to sit with each other at lunch and go over some plans and techniques. I also would really like to go over some ways to combine, or "fuse", if you will, our powers. But feel free to alert the heads of your cabins about why you won't be at your regularly scheduled activities. Remember, this is prophesied by Apollo himself. That means if they wanna argue with it, they argue with the Fates. I think that demi-gods know by now that that's a bad idea," Zack reminded. With that they took off towards the dining pavilion.

When waiting in line Zack thought over who to pray to. When he got to the fire, Zack decided who to give the juiciest piece of sausage to. "_Artemis, Mom, you have been on more adventures than almost any other god or hero. I put up a brave front, but I'm terrified. Please, give me courage, and also, if you could ask some of the gods to tell me in advance any errands I need them to run on the quest, like on a list like the powers were, that's be great. I love you_," Zack prayed. He then threw the sausage into the fire and gave her a pancake for extra measure. Zach left the line and went over to Ned's table where Ned, Sarah, Echo, and Ned's sister were already eating. "Hey dude, I have some really good ideas for methods on attacks," Ned began. Ned was throwing some pretty rad ideas. Zack sat down between Echo and Maya, having nowhere else to sit.

Zack, Ned, and the girls had been going over a plan for about half an hour that involved some serious water power with Zack and Echo when Mikey showed up. "What's going on?" Zack asked him. Mikey was bouncing up and down with excitement. "I've got the gloves," Mikey told him, "Along with the backpack too." Zack almost flew right off his seat, in fact he did. As he did so he said, "That's great! Echo, Ned, I'll see you guys at the arena. I need to go see this. It's really important." Zack and Mikey took off for cabin 9. When they got there the three items were sitting on a work table right in front of the door. The items were a pair of gloves, a backpack, and a headband. Zack put on the gloves and then the backpack, finally the headband. The two then stepped outside. "Did you build the backpack to my specifications?" Zack asked Mikey. "With one or two little additions here and there," Mikey told him. "Okay, but the basic design is still the same though, right?" Zack asked just to double check. "Absolutely. I'll inform you of the modifications after you get the hang of the basic layout of the design. Try it out," offered Mikey.

Zack focused… hard. The headband lit up and the backpack turned into a jetpack. Zack took off straight into the sky. He was so excited he got distracted and lost focus on the need to keep the engines going. The band darkened, and the jetpack reverted back into a regular jetpack. Zack started to freefall and then concentrated as hard as he could on getting the jetpack back online so he didn't go splat. This thing was pretty heavy, and it was so heavy that he couldn't lift himself with his wind ability. Zack got the band to light back up again and he was flying sky high again. He got so he was flying straight, rather than straight up, as the air was beginning to become rather thin. He tried to stop and just hover, which at the altitude he was at was rather difficult. So, naturally Zack did the only logical thing one could do in his situation. He stopped thinking about the jetpack to set himself up for an eighteen mile freefall. About two hundred feet before he became really good friends with the ground, Zack re activated the jetpack to hover. "You are really good with that already. You really do have a way with machines don't you?" Mikey asked Zack. Zack landed and took off the jetpack. Since he could fly, he'd give that particular item to Ned. "I do. I see all the potential uses for any piece of machinery," Zack told him. He might not be able to build things, but he could do just about anything else with them. Zack was very proud of Mikey though. This kid was the best at what did. "You know, you are just like your brother Tony. At least, when it comes to machines," Zack told him, "Do these gloves work as ordered?" "Of course. I rarely disappoint with my machines," Mikey responded. Zack walked over to the edge of the wall for the Hephaestus cabin. He then proceeded to climb up the wall Spider-Man style. When he got back down to the ground, Zack decided that Echo could have the gloves and be just like her half-brother, Peter Parker. "To put it simply," Zack began "Me like-y," Zack said as he took off the gloves, then put them in his pocket, then asked "So, how did you use get the jetpack to work?" "You remember the Mag. Engine we were talking about? I used that on a smaller scale. I'm still working on it for the bike though," Mikey told him, "Although, I will have it done before you leave. I'm also working on a." Mikey was cut off by an approaching Percy.

"Hey, Zack. Clarisse says you're pretty handy with your special sword. Wanna go a couple rounds?" Percy asked him. "That depends, have you gone back into the Styx since the defeat of Gaia?" Zack asked. He didn't wanna be hustled. "No, I have not. That is a blessing you can receive once," Percy informed him. "Alright then, I'll beat you, I mean spar you," Zack said cockily. "We'll just see about that," Percy said and the two walked off to the arena. They got to the arena and Percy put his gear on for fighting. Percy noticed that Zack didn't have any armor on. "We fight with the same limitations. Activate your gear," Percy said. Moaning and groaning all the while, Zack put up his hoodie and his armor was activated. The two then got into a ready stance and began to fight. Zack attacked first, a pre-emptive strike. Percy however saw it coming and spun his sword to force Zack to do a one eighty. Percy then attempted to use the butt of his sword on Zack's helmet but Zack duck and rolled out of the way. He then swiped his sword with his left hand three times and sent a powerful burst of air, not exactly a mini-tornado, but very powerful. The force of the wind sent Percy into a vertical five hundred forty degree spin and he landed on his back. Zack tried to disarm him using the air blast on Riptide to knock it out of Percy's hand, but Percy rolled out of the way and tripped Zack with his legs. As Zack was going down he swung his sword with his left hand six times then threw it to the left of Percy. Percy was confused, but stood up, and pointed his sword at Zack. "I win," Percy said. "Did you?" Zack asked then looked to the left. The sword came up from the ground and hit the middle of Percy's sword, which knocked it off balance and Percy dropped it. Before Percy could react Zack grabbed the swords from mid-air and pointed them both at Percy. "Still think you won?" Zack asked Percy. Percy smiled. "You are good, kid. I really think you are going to be great on your quest. Although, I do need to warn you about one thing," Percy told Zack. "What is it?" Zack asked. "If you have any dreams, no matter how dark or bad they seem, or what you think you saw, always tell the people what you saw. Can you do that?" Percy asked him. Zack remembered reading about the dreams in the books. They helped sometimes, but often caused more trouble than any good.

"Yes, Mr. Jackson, I will do that. I promise," Zack said. "My daughter is on the line. I need you to swear on the river Styx." "If that's what you need, I swear on the river Styx to tell Ned and Echo my dreams once we leave for the quest," Zack swore. Thunder rumbled. The promise had been made, and Zack didn't know what would happen if he broke it, but he didn't want to find out. Percy and Zack went back to training for a little while and Percy was more than a little impressed with Zack's ability. "I really can't believe you've never used a sword before coming here," Percy told him, shaking his head in an _om-my-gods_ manner. "I'm probably so good because I've got both of the two main war gods in my blood," Zack answered him. They thought about it and agreed. "Zack, I need to ask you a question about your parents," Percy said. Zack looked at him and spread his arms in _go-ahead-shoot_ manner. "Do you have a favorite?" "Are you going to get mad if I say that it's not Poseidon?" Zack asked him in return. "I won't. I have a feeling who it is then," Percy said. "Who do you think it is, then?" Zack asked him. "Athena?" "Nope." "Zeus, then right?" "Wrong again." Thunder rumbled and Zack looked up with a smile on his face. "Sorry dad." "Okay, okay, I think I know who it is now… Apollo." "Still no, but you're getting very close." A literal arrow of light came down from the sun and landed right next to Zack's foot. At first Zack screamed and jumped out of the way. "Looks like Apollo's not too happy about that," said Percy. "No, he's cool with it. If he wanted me dead for him not being my favorite, he would've hit me. I think it's a gift," Zack said as he put it in his bag. Zack could never be sure, but after he put the arrow away, the sun seemed to shine just a little bit brighter. "If it's not Athena, Poseidon, Zeus, or Apollo… hmm, wait, really, Artemis?" Percy asked. Zack nodded. Now Zack could definitely tell the day was getting brighter. Because the sun was coming right for them. The super-hot super-fast sports car landed right next to Zack and Percy. Of course Apollo stepped out, but then Hermes was right with him.

Hermes was giggling as he got out. "Now I see why you love being the sun god so much," Hermes told Apollo. "Did you appreciate the warning I sent?" Apollo asked Percy and Zack. "That was a warning?" Zack asked. "Yeah, oh, don't worry. You were right about the gift thing too." "If you were traveling with the god of messengers, why did you use an arrow?" Percy asked. "Sunday's my day off. The post people in America follow Christian rules, and since they're my way of communicating Americans with other Americans, I must follow them as well," Hermes explained. That made sense. "Wait though, maybe neither of you know this, since this isn't really your guys' forte, but, is there like a capital G God?" Zack asked. Zack was born and raised a Catholic, but now with the whole Greek introduction, he really didn't know. "That's not really for us to say. That, my friend, is up to you," Apollo said. "Alright. Why did you two come here?" Zack asked them. Zack was plenty happy to see two of his parents, but why were they here? "You remember your prayer to Artemis this morning?" Hermes asked. "Ye- oooooooooh. I see. Can I have it?" asked Zack. Hermes handed Zack the list and Zack looked it over. There were only three items on the list.

Help Tony Stark.

Save Spider-Man

Re-boot the Quin-jet

Zack looked at the list, then back up at Apollo. "Why in the name of Olympus do these things always come in threes? And why are all three of them in New York?" Zack asked him. Percy took a look at the list and then looked up at Apollo. "Any answers?" Percy asked him. Apollo and Hermes just hopped into the car and sped off. "Well, to be fair, I only asked for the list, not any explanations," Zack said. Percy just shook his head. "I guess that maybe Hermes was right," Percy said, very glumly. "What do you mean?" They had followed through on their end of the agreement. "After the Battle of New York, I made the gods make promises," Percy began, but was then was cut off by Zack. "Oh right, Hermes talked to you after you did that and said that things might not be better. You think that them not telling me why I need to do the things on the list is them going back. Am I right?" Percy nodded as a response. "It's been happening more and more, them finding loopholes by using the words literally," Percy lamented. "Hey, we've all done that. You can't get mad at them, we're all a little lazy sometimes. Don't try and tell me that you've never used Annabeth's words literally to get out of doing something, or Echo using your words against you either. You've seen that the gods are less than perfect," thunder rumbled, "but you also know that in most of them, there is a little scrap of honor. You know for a fact that Hermes has it, as does your father. Give them a chance," said Zack.

Percy looked up at him gravely. Zack suddenly became very nervous. "Zack, I think you might be in danger," Percy warned. "Why? I haven't even come close to starting my quest yet," Zack said. "I haven't known you very long, but I can't really see any fatal flaw. You've been humble, so I know that it's not hubris. You've been making friends with everybody, so you're not especially loyal like I am. You always take an active role in activities, so you don't feel like a seventh wheel. You're perfectly fine," Percy said. Zack understood what Percy was saying now. Without a fatal flaw Zack would be greater than the gods, and they might kill him as soon as they're done with him. Now Zack was afraid. He didn't want to die. He began to feel sick. Zack flew to the top of the arena and threw up over the side. He was weak from vomiting, so getting back down without a free fall was a challenge. Percy got a wash cloth wet and started dabbing it on Zack's forehead while leading him to the infirmary.

About two minutes after Zack got checked into the infirmary, Yayu burst in. He rushed over, and although Zack was perfectly fine with him now being half goat, the thing that made Zack uncomfortable was his Boston accent. They had known each other for five months and he had always sounded the way he looked, straight from Japan. Now that the charade was over though, he always sounded like he just got out of a Red Sox game. "Zach, what the Hades are you doing? You've been here one day and I hear this is your second time here. What have you been doing?" Yayu asked. Zack was still kind of out of it, so Percy answered for him. "The first time was because he passed out because of his banner for capture the flag. This time he found out he might die after his first quest because he's too dangerous." Now Yayu looked pale. "Does he know?" Yayu asked Percy. "Hephaestus told him. His quest is in twelve days. I was training him when the pieces fell into place in his head. He's already got a team picked out. My daughter, Ned Tyson, and himself. They're going to Alaska after they help out some supers in New York," Percy dumped on Yayu. Yayu slumped onto an empty cot. "Dang. Thanks for the heads up Percy."


End file.
